In accordance with Procedure
Rules Nos.11 and 35 a total period of 10 minutes is allocated for
members of the public to address the Committee on any matter
relevant to the work of the Committee.

Individual members of the
public may speak for up to 5 minutes but the Chairman will decide
how the period of time allocated for public speaking will be
apportioned where there are a number of speakers.

Note: In order for officers to
undertake any background research it would be helpful if questions
were submitted at least one working day before the
meeting.

Minutes:

In accordance with Procedure Rules 11 and 35
Mr Fiddler addressed the Committee. He
spoke on behalf of a number of hackney carriage and private hire
drivers in respect of their concerns regarding the conditions of
operation approved at the last meeting, and on the fees and charges
to be considered later in this meeting.

To consider the
consultation responses received and to determine the fees to be
charged by the Council in relation to the licensing of hackney
carriage and private hire vehicles, drivers and
operators.

Consideration was given to a report on the
responses to the consultation exercise on fees and charges and the
Committee was requested to determine the fees to be charged by the
Council in relation to the licensing of hackney carriage and
private hire vehicles, drivers and operators.

Further to the information contained in the
agenda reports two additional items of information were circulated
at the meeting. The first was a
schedule of comments/objections relating to the harmonising
exercise, submitted on behalf of the taxi drivers, and the second
was a breakdown of the costs used to calculate the base budget for
licensing costs.

In order to be able to properly assess the
fees proposed, the basis of which was the reasonable recovery of
the cost to the Council of the issue and administration of the
grant of hackney carriage/private hire drivers licences, the
Committee requested clarification of how the figures used to
calculate the base budget for licensing costs had been
calculated. The Committee was informed
that due to the difficulties arising from comparing three different
accounting systems a more detailed analysis would need to be
carried out in order to provide this information.

It was, therefore, requested that a decision
on this matter be deferred for a period of one month in order to
allow time for the additional financial information requested by
the Committee to be prepared, and that appropriate arrangements be
made for a meeting of the Committee to be held at that
time. It was noted that any licences
that became due for renewal in the intervening period would be
renewed at the existing rates.

RESOLVED - that a decision on the fees to be
charged by Cheshire East Council in relation to the licensing of
hackney carriage vehicles and drivers and private hire vehicles,
drivers and operators be deferred, and that a further report be
considered at a meeting of the Committee in approximately one
month’s time.

To consider an amendment to the approved
licence conditions for private hire vehicles.

Minutes:

Consideration was given to an amendment to the licence
conditions for private hire vehicles. At its meeting on 13 March 2009 the Committee had
approved these conditions but it transpired that there was an error
in condition 9.1 and this now needed to be rectified.

It was recommended that the words “which has been
notified to the Council” be added to condition 9.1 (iii) and
(viii). The Committee clarified this
further by adding “but not approved” to the additional
wording.

RESOLVED

That the words “which has been notified to but not
approved by the Council” be added to condition 9.1 (iii) and
(viii) of the licence conditions for private hire
vehicles.

To consider the
proposed policy on convictions as they relate to applicants for
hackney carriage and private hire drivers licences and licence
holders who commit offences.

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a proposed policy
on convictions for applicants for hackney carriage and private hire
drivers licences, and licence holders who committed
offences.Members of the
Committee asked for consideration to be given to the inclusion of
threatening or abusive violent behaviour in the policy of relevant
convictions and it was agreed that this should be investigated
further.

RESOLVED – that the inclusion of
threatening or abusive violent behaviour in the policy of relevant
convictions be investigated and a further report be considered at a
future meeting of the Committee.